When looking for a job in the graphic design industry, it first helps to know what type of role you’d like and how you view yourself in such roles.
In regards to a title: are you a new graduate seeking an internship, entry-level position, or junior design role? Or are you a seasoned vet who is looking for more responsibilities as a Lead Designer, Art Director or Creative Director? Or are you somewhere in between and/or pivoting to a more specialized role like a Brand Designer, Production Designer, UX Designer, etc?
Whatever stage you are in or role you find yourself seeking, it is always helpful to clearly define it. This will help you know what the role you seek does; specifically, what the day to day functions are, or what you might bring to the position. If you are less experienced and not sure what role you might be a good fit for, by all means, apply for different ones within your interest(s). Focus on skillset first and aspirations second.
Simply put, if you want to do graphic design and are right out of school, it would make sense to call yourself a Graphic Designer. If you are right out of school and have no real world experience, it is a tough sell to list your desired title as a Creative Director. This is where a little honesty and transparency goes a long way. By knowing how to accurately address yourself in title, this makes the role you seek, and the role organizations are trying to fill easier to match with much less back and forth trying to define or fit you and your experience into a category relevant to a title. Make it easy for them, and you.
For more clarity, below are a few roles in hierarchy of experience that you might find in a creative shop. For each one, a basic description is provided for what that role’s responsibilities might entail. These roles vary studio to studio depending on size, but the general dynamic is meant as a reference point to help you find your “descriptor”.
Graphic Design Intern
First of all, if the internship doesn’t pay, don’t take it. In this day and age, especially with rising costs of living, who can do work for no pay? If a company is busy enough to need an intern, they should be able to pay you. Now, an intern’s pay isn’t much to brag about generally, but the right experience with the right place will be so fruitful in terms of day to day business and creative knowledge, that it will go a long way and continue your education while getting hands on experience. All internships are opportunities for Full-time employment (or at least should be; ask before applying) because you are already in the door. Do your best, and act like you already have the job… someone will notice.
Junior Graphic Designer
This role is usually an entry level position, but can be invaluable for experience, learning, and in general “getting your hands dirty” on all things graphic design. Usually this role involves a lot of production oriented tasks, file prep, day to day file organization, and in general, copy and image placements and cropping. You will learn the ins and outs of all the software used, processes followed and best practices needed for solid project flow and deliverables. It is also in this type of role that you will start to feel your preferences and recognize your strengths. Such as: do you like publication design or websites? Do you like copy setting or logo development? Do you enjoy image retouching or simply putting together presentation decks? Is social content and media more your thing? A lot of this role will be task based, but with the right agency or studio, you will gain insight into what makes up, and how one follows a creative strategy and how that informs the deliverables and end results.
Graphic Designer
This role is a lot like a Junior Designer, but with a better title. That’s a joke, but seriously, your learning will continue, you’ll be able to contribute to the team efforts and some of your specialized skills should be starting to emerge, like: you enjoy logo creation, your a pro with video editing, Word Press is like a second language to you, etc. We, as designers, wear a lot of hats, but it is ok to start formulating ideas on which areas you might like to develop further and focus on.
Senior Graphic Designer
This role manages all design projects given to them and oversees junior designers to ensure high-quality work throughout the entirety of the project and from the team. They may go on photo shoots, source and retain outside talent such as illustrators, writers, photographers, and more. This role in the right agency/studio environment starts to let this person spread their wings and take more ownership of different components of their projects. Still reporting to Art Directors and Creative Directors, but able to spend more time on self-initiated and independent tasks while managing more on a day to day basis.
Art Director
This position is like being the lead in a play. You set the tone, tempo, pace and overall mood of the visuals. You literally “direct art”. And this art is many micro decisions that supports the visual strategy for the client’s project(s). You determine the overall style in which a message is communicated visually to its audience. For each project, you articulate the vision to designers, artists, programmers, writers, photographers, etc. Depending on the type of work your studio does, this can be for print, web, social, trade shows, videos, film, commercials, etc. It’s really an agency putting faith in your aesthetic and business acumen to manage, direct and oversee to completion the communication designs that your organization was hired to do.
Creative Director
The Creative Director is like a team’s coach. They have “played the game for many years” and fully understands the rules, goals and strategies needed to mentor, advise, direct and manage projects and people. They are also more involved with the creation of the strategies, meeting and interfacing with he client, setting the pace, iterations, timelines, deadlines, internal reviews, quality controls, etc. The buck stops with this position in regards to overall design business strategies and manages staff and puts them in positions to succeed by showcasing talents and leveraging skills when and where needed. This role, manages other creatives and all the work those creatives do from a process and quality control standpoint.
When prepping for your job search, you should treat yourself like you’d treat your clients (aka – brand yourself). Have consistent font, color palette, and visual aesthetic.
This should be applied to every marketing item you use (and yes, love it or hate it these are marketing items). Items such as your logo, your business/V Card, Resume and your social account posts and content. By having a clearly understood position in mind, and personal brand plan in place, you will have the foundational elements ready, and can proceed confidently in search of your next graphic design job.
SINCERELY,
Sean Fermoyle
Graphic Designer/Art Director
SEANFERMOYLE.COM
Robert Robbins
Creative Director
ROBERTWROBBINS.COM
